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With just over a week remaining until the start of the new Premier League campaign, there are already quite a few number of questions brewing up.
Who are the favourites to win the league? Who are the favourites to get relegated? But one question that always remains high amongst the fans and media alike, is that of which manager will become the first one to be shown the exit door.
The turnover of managers in the Premier League over the last 3-5 years has been incredibly high, and with the financial rewards of staying in the top tier of English football now, it is hardly surprising that club chairman and owners make these decisions to change the manager during the course of a season to reach there acquired objective.
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Almost half of the Premier League clubs changed their manager last season, with West Brom switching managers twice in an attempt to stay in the Premier League.
This season will bring the same pressure for the Premier League clubs and their managers. The intrigue remains: Who will become the first manager this season to be sacked?
#5 Jose Mourinho (Manchester United)
The former Chelsea and Real Madrid manager has looked far from happy during the summer at Manchester United. Frustrated by many factors, Mourinho has found himself in the firing line with the media and supporters alike, who could be running out of patience with the Portuguese manager.
The three signings Manchester United have made are calculated signings with a view of improving squad depth but do they really improve this Manchester United side that does need more influx of first team-stars in order to compete again for the Premier League title.
Mourinho's frustration at not acquiring his top targets thus far anyway would have to be the biggest factor towards his current demeanour and attitude as he has always been able to spend big wherever he has managed.
The signing of Fred was high on his agenda, but so far the club has not secured a top-class central defender that is needed right now in this United team. Toby Alderweireld and Harry Maguire are known to be his preferred targets, with Barcelona and Colombia centre back Yerry Mina considered to be the last resort.
Mourinho has not handled the Anthony Martial situation very well at all, with the Frenchman often coming under criticism form the Red Devils manager. Martial has failed to link back up with his teammates, after leaving the club during pre-season to see his newborn son.
Criticising the club captain Antonio Valencia who picked up an injury during the pre-season tour in the United States is also a factor as to why Jose could possibly leave Old Trafford.
Mourinho seemingly looks withdrawn from the squad and staff, while attacking the board with his comments during press conferences. If these internal tensions do not reduce, then Mourinho might become the first casualty of the season.
#4 Claude Puel (Leicester City)
The Leicester manager might be under pressure from the outset of the Premier League campaign especially when you consider how heavily he was linked to being replaced during the back end of the previous campaign.
Despite a commendable achievement of finishing ninth in the Premier League after replacing Craig Shakespeare, Puel was never the first choice to replace the previous manager. In the initial months, Puel found himself trying to win the Leicester fans over, which to some degree he did, with a very promising start at the King Power Stadium.
The former Saints manager is considered to be a tactically astute man having successfully managed the likes of Lyon and Nice in France. The only complaint that fans had was his style of play wasn't great, but yet it was effective.
This summer has been a reasonable success for Puel and Leicester; after all getting £60 million for the unhappy Riyad Mahrez has to be considered a success. The transfer in-comings at Leicester have been smart and has gone somewhat under the radar.
Acquiring Jonny Evans for as little as they did was smart business for an established Premier League defender, who previously had been linked with big money moves to both Arsenal and Manchester City just about a year ago.
Ricardo Pereira joining the club for an initial £21.9 million fee is a massive coup for the club and exactly what they needed to improve the team in the right full back position. James Maddison from Norwich will add real quality to the final third for the foxes with his ability in front of goal while Danny Ward from Liverpool is a goalkeeper who needs to gain experience at the top level.
The future of Harry Maguire might cast a shadow over what has been a positive summer for the club and could determine what sort of season Puel and Leicester might have. Kasper Schmeichel is another name linked with a move out of the club this summer so keeping these two will strengthen Puel's position at the King Power Stadium.
Leicester need to make a solid start to the season, avoid dropping near the bottom three. Consolidating mid-table early and Puel will give himself a massive chance of continuing his role at the club. The Leicester board are not scared to act on a bad start as shown in the previous two seasons.
#3 Marco Silva (Everton)
Everton finally got there man when they appointed Marco Silva at the start of this season, and the pressure will be on the Portuguese manager from the start. The former Watford manager who left the Watford mid-season was linked heavily with a move to Goodison after the sacking of Ronald Koeman. Inevitably the links were what cost Silva his job at Vicarage Road with a serious decline in form.
The former Hull city manager has does not have the best of records in England with the Everton job being his third club. This time though, he needs to get this team pushing towards the top end of the Premier League table.
Everton supporters are known to be among the most passionate in England and give the manager every chance, however, this wasn't the case for Allardyce last season, so acquiring a better style of football is vital towards Silva winning over the Everton supporters.
The expectation at Goodison Park has been raised with the money spent at the club over the last two summers, and with more expected later this summer. Chairman Farhad Moshiri will undoubtedly want to see a return from his investment soon and under-seeing two managers at the club so far during his reign Silva must know that he must hit the ground running as the Iranian businessman will not hesitate to relieve him of his duties.
Everton fans will be slightly disappointed however with the transfer business that the club has conducted so far this summer, as Richarlison, an uncapped Brazilian came in for a deal expected in the region of £50 million overall causing a major debate of whether they have paid over the odds for the inconsistent Brazilian.
The club needs to press on and sign at least one new central defender if not two. They have been linked with many names all summer but have yet to invest in what would be considered the weakest position in the team.
Silva might look to bring in a partner for Michael Keane who had a disappointing first season on the blue half of Merseyside. Yerry Mina has been strongly linked with a move to Goodison to solve the defensive issues.
Marco Silva was the man that Moshiri wanted at the club, and now that he has his man it will be interesting to see if he supports his manager with time and money. Silva will need the Everton fans on his side if he is to stay on Merseyside.
#2 Javi Gracia (Watford)
The former Rubin Kazan and Malaga manager will be under pressure as soon as the Premier League campaign starts. The Watford board have developed a reputation for consistently changing managers.
Watford have been considered one of the favourites to get relegated this season by the bookmakers so a good start is imperative to Gracia's future at Vicarage Road. The club will continue looking to improve the squad right up to the end of transfer deadline day, but right now the investment the club has made in players is not the most efficient.
Praise must go to the club for getting the fee they did for Richarlison from Everton with Gracia hopefully getting to use that money to invest in recruits for his squad.
Ben Foster is a great signing for the club, a reliable goalkeeper who was arguably West Brom's best player during their relegation campaign last season. Acquiring Gerard Deulofeu on a permanent deal from Barcelona could be massive for the club, providing the Spanish winger can gain more consistency in his game.
Left back Adam Masina is rather an unknown for many in England, but the former Bologna fullback is extremely highly rated in Italy and could prove a real bargain signing for Gracia and Watford.
The disappointment for the club and their fans is that the team needs a top-class central defender who could be a real leader at the heart of Watford defence, something they lacked last season without a doubt.
Gracia at Watford by the end of the season would have to be considered highly unlikely since Gracia at Watford come Christmas at this stage would even have to be considered highly unlikely.
#1 Neil Warnock (Cardiff City)
Cardiff are back in the top tier of English football thanks to one man: Neil Warnock. Taking the Welsh club from relegation candidates to second in the Championship over two seasons is a remarkable achievement for the 69-year-old veteran manager.
The relegation battle is always an intriguing situation when it comes to the Premier League, but it is safe to consider Cardiff as one of the favourites for the drop this season. Owner Vincent Tan will have to be realistic when it comes to what this Cardiff team can achieve in the Premier League this season, but the Malaysian owner has reformed somewhat after the first season he endured in the Premier League.
The squad is still of Championship level but where the squad lack in quality, Warnock will install a determination and hunger to fight, and they will certainly not be an easy opponent to play against. Bobby Reid and Josh Murphy are the standout transfer in-comings thus far from Bristol City and Norwich respectively.
Inevitably Cardiff will struggle and Warnock will come under scrutiny from the fans and perhaps owner Tan as they will look for a way to stay within the league. More investment is needed to acquire more quality to stay in the Premier League.
This might just be the last opportunity Warnock has to manage at this level so we can expect great emotion from the former Sheffield United and QPR manager, as well as great press conferences and interviews. Early signs are bleak for Cardiff and Neil Warnock, though in football anything can happen. Rock bottom and Warnock to go early is an early prediction.
